Nine Nights of Darkness
by October'sEnd
Summary: Harry Potter does not survive the Killing Curse as a baby. Five years pass, and the Wizarding World is almost lost to the Dark. Desperate, Severus brings baby Harry from the dead and raises him to be a formidable enemy against the Dark Lord. AU.
1. Chapter 1, Forsaken

**Nine Nights of Darkness**

Harry Potter does not survive the Killing Curse as a baby.  
Five years pass, and the Wizarding World is lost in darkness.  
Desperate, Severus brings baby Harry from the dead  
and raises him to be a formidable enemy to the Dark Lord. AU.

**Chapter One, Forsaken**

"_Avada Kedavra!"_

Baby Harry's green eyes shone for a brief instant, and extinguished. The light vanished as his body went limp inside his crib. Voldemort stood with his wand arm stretched out, his ruby eyes shining darkly with victory. He coldly looked down at Lily Potter – the mother who was willing to sacrifice herself for her son – and the baby that was prophesied to be a threat against him. Now nothing stood in his way. The small tension in the back of his neck diminished as he let out a dark laughter. It crept up from deep within him and echoed through the demolished home. In the distance, he could hear a commotion so he apparated away.

* * *

Nagini slithered beside Voldemort's throne and settled her head on his lap. The throne, which glittered with gold and spectacular gems, towered on a raised platform that overlooked the entire Death Eater compound. It signified Voldemort's power – his dominance – over the Death Eaters who could only kneel and admire his majesty from below. Lucius Malfoy was the only other soul in the compound. He knelt on one knee before his Lord, waiting to report.

"_What news do you have for me, Luciusss._"

"My Lord, Bellatrix's team has successfully infiltrated the Ministry of Magic. Millicent Bagnold is dead, as are most of the important Ministry officials."

"_And what of Hogwarts?_"

"It has been done, My Lord. Dumbledore has yielded his control over Hogwarts for the sake of his students. He will remain in Hogwarts, but we have replaced all Professors with our own. The children of Purebloods have been untouched, and reside in the dungeons. Those of tainted blood are being kept as one group in the Towers."

"_As it should be._"

* * *

"_What are you doing here!_" Remus hissed from under his hooded cloak. He clutched painfully at Sirius' arm and dragged him to the shadows.

"Why aren't you hiding. How dare you risk yourself to come he-"

"Remus!" Sirius demanded, with a tone of up most importance. Remus paused.

"Things aren't good. It's been five years now Remus, _five years, _and this is what has become of our lives. Have you heard about Hogwarts, Remus? _Have you?_" Sirius looked as if he was at the edge of insanity.

Remus stiffened.

"Hogwarts is now a Deatheater training camp_. _They've stripped all Muggleborn students of their wands and have confined them to basic magical theory and history. Their magic will be discontinued. Pureblood children are being trained, Remus. The army for Voldemort is _only _growing stronger and we. have. nothing."

* * *

"_I call upon the Underworld to relinquish the soul of Harry James Potter._

_Send forth his departed soul and bring his life-force back to his abode._

_By the order of Kore and Adonis I compel his body, mind, and soul to be reunited._

_I evoke his death, and sacrifice my own soul for your will as you see fit, at any time._

_I do bind this deed with the circles of power._

_Harry James Potter return to the Realms of the Living."_

Severus Snape smeared the sacrificial blood from the altar onto his forehead and slashed his wand through the air in a complicated dance. The circles of power drawn on the ground glowed as the decomposed body of Harry James Potter hovered above the ground. Severus trembled as he felt the forces of the Gods pulling around him, demanding to know why they had been brought to the human realm. He felt a whisper-thin hand cup the side of his face and opened his eyes wide as he felt cold lips touch his, sealing his deal with the Underworld with a kiss of death.

Whispers of the dead spread around the room as they searched for the right soul. And quickly as they came, they left and the only sound in the room was the crackling of the fireplace and a wail of a the spirit of the baby boy. He stared with unreserved shock and hope as he saw the body of Harry Potter begin to rejuvenate itself, giving life back to every inch of skin and cell in his body. A sphere of black and blue light enclosed tightly around the still lifeless baby, and splintered as the baby took his first breath of life and screamed.

Severus trembled and touched his fingertips to the lightning bolt scar on the baby's forehead. The skin was cold to the touch, but was smooth and otherwise unmarred. Harry's eyes blinked open and Severus knew, from deep within his heart, that he had made the right choice. He had sacrificed himself, and he knew without a doubt that one day he would have to repay his debt to the Gods, but the savior was back. Baby Harry stopped screeching and stared at Severus with intense glowing orbs of green.

There was warmth in those eyes. Harry Potter was death himself, the epitome of darkness, but there was still light. There was hope.

The Wizarding World could restore itself.

--

**Thank You! Please review. (:**

*** **Millicent Bagnold was the Minister of Magic at the time (I think?) Can someone perhaps verify that information for me? And what is the female form of Minister?


	2. Chapter 2, Harry

**Nine Nights of Darkness**

Harry Potter does not survive the Killing Curse as a baby.  
Five years pass, and the Wizarding World is lost in darkness.  
Desperate, Severus brings baby Harry from the dead and  
raises him to be a formidable enemy to the Dark Lord. **AU**.

**Chapter Two, Harry**

Harry didn't have a heartbeat. That was one of the first things Severus discovered his first year with baby Harry. Harry had a fully functioning heart, but it was missing the special trait that hearts usually possessed - beats. It was one of the strange, unexplainable side effects of coming back from the dead. This of course would raise uncomfortable questions from Harry when he would realize that Severus had a heartbeat. But Severus would try his best to be a patient teacher, a patient guardian, and raise Harry right. He would protect his innocence for a few years, while encouraging him to study, but then he would unleash upon him all the knowledge he had on the Dark Arts, Voldemort, and train him into becoming a worthy opponent, a warrior.

The past five years had been a strange one. Harry Potter's death was an instant blow to those who knew of his importance, which only included a small entourage of people. More importantly, it was a large victory for the Dark Lord, who viewed Harry as his weakness. With the weakness gone, what was to stop him? What was there to stop him in his rise to World Power? After Harry's death, the Light stayed on top for one more year, before crumbling. Dumbledore's careful plan for Harry's future and his position on the Light was destroyed. Then, he was threatened with one weakness. His goodness. The Deatheaters stormed through Hogwarts' protective walls, and demanded Dumbledore to relinquish his control over the school. Or people would start dying.

Dumbledore knew he couldn't ever refuse without risking all the Muggleborn students in his school, so he stepped down peacefully. The school was instantly over-run by supporters of the Dark Lord, and taught the Pureblood children the Dark Arts.

The Order of the Phoenix lost a significant amount of members during Deatheater raids. They took a liking to popping into Muggle towns and wrecking havoc on all the unsuspecting townspeople. The death toll of non-magic beings increased in a short period of time. And Severus was one of these people, these Deatheaters. He was still a spy, but no matter what intelligence he passed on to the Light, there just wasn't enough people to fight. The spirit among the Light was broken.

This was why Severus decided to do a rare and daring ritual, one that could kill him if he ever did something wrong during the ritual. He remembered that there was an ancient spell that would bring a person back from the dead. Unlike most Necromancy legends, this spell would bring the person back to life intact. He would not be a zombie. He would not be evil. He would come back, just as he went, and be able to live a normal life. The same could not be said for the caster. The caster would give up his life to the Underworld. Essentially, the caster would be making a deal with the devil, giving him a debt that he could ask for any time at all.

This spell was also Dark. But Severus had no problem with that. He would be teaching little Harry everything about the Dark Arts with due time. It was the only way to out-maneuver the Dark Lord.

* * *

"Harry, please focus." Severus said patiently.

"Yes, Severus." Harry said softly.

Harry was now six years old. Since Harry's rebirth, Severus had been waiting for the day to start his magical training. It took a few years for a child's magical core to grow, and to force the core to develop too quickly could be devastating to a wizard, so Severus waited. Besides, Severus wasn't sure if a boy younger than the age of six could handle what he would teach.

Harry was a pale reflection of a normal boy. He had wide solemn green eyes, creamy white skin, jet black hair, and a thunderbolt shaped scar that he acquired from Voldemort. Harry and Severus spent the last four years in complete isolation. Harry didn't know a single other person besides Severus. He knew _of _other people, but had never came face to face with them.

Harry also knew all the important basics. He knew that he was not normal. He knew that his parents had died to an evil Dark Lord name Voldemort. He knew that Severus would never be his father, just his teacher. Severus had taken special care to let Harry know the truth from an early age. It would build Harry's character, and it would make him want vengeance for killing his loving, doting parents.

In the beginning, Harry had started to call Severus his father. When Harry was reborn, he was brought back with memories from his former self. For many long months, Harry only asked for his mama, dada, Pa'foot, and Moony. But slowly, those images of Lily, James, Sirius and Remus were replaced by one single face – Severus.

"What is the _Lumos _spell?"

"_Lumos_ is a spell to light your wand. It will emit a thin beam of light like a torch."

"What is it's Latin meaning?"

"Lumen is Latin for light, and luminous is Latin for bright."

"Very good, Harry. What is the counter-spell for _Lumos_?"

"The counter-spell is _Nox._"

"Please proceed."

Harry nodded and gripped his wand. It was a very unique wand – 11 inches, made of Quercus Macrocarpa (Bur Oak) with a feather from a Griffin. It was even more unique because Severus and Harry had built it from scratch together. Severus very well knew that he couldn't just show up to any wand maker and demand a wand for a boy that was supposed to be dead.

Harry burrowed his eyebrows together as he concentrated on the spell, pointing his wand away from his body.

"_LUMOS!" _He bellowed.

A glowing white light started at the tip of his wand, and grew in size and power, until the blinding light filled every corner of the makeshift classroom.

"_Nox," _Harry whispered.

The light immediately fled from the room. Severus tried to hide the surge of pride and surprise that he felt inside. This was Harry's **first** spell. It was Harry's first spell and it exceeded Severus' own _Lumos. _His light did not blind a person like Harry's did. Severus knew this was a good indication of Harry's magical ability. Harry stood very still, eyebrows still burrowed together, and stared at his wand.

"_Lumos,"_

This time, it was much softer. It looked as if Harry was making an effort to contain his power. He was rewarded with a warm white glow of medium size. It was the standard light of a standard Wizard.

"Harry, can you try another spell for me?"

Harry thought for a second.

"Any spell I want?"

"Any spell you'd like."

Harry thought back to all the spells he learned. Even though Harry had never cast a spell until today, he had been religiously reading from the day that he could. The Manor had a tower, which was a library in itself. It was circular, almost three stories high, and it was packed from top to bottom with ancient books. On the ground floor there was a fireplace that was always flickering gently with a warm fire in the winters, and a revolving wooden staircase up revealed a second floor platform that held a reading chair and lamp.

This was Harry's favorite place in the world, Severus discovered. Severus taught Harry to read at an early age, so that Harry could consume all the knowledge in the world. The more, the better, because it would be the only way for Harry to get an upper hand over Voldemort.

Harry knew which spell he had always wanted to try.

"_Expecto Patronum!"_

* * *

**Thanks for reading (:**


	3. Chapter 3, Paintings

**Nine Nights of Darkness**

Harry Potter does not survive the Killing Curse as a baby.  
Five years pass, and the Wizarding World is lost in darkness.  
Desperate, Severus brings baby Harry from the dead and  
raises him to be a formidable enemy to the Dark Lord. **AU**.

**Chapter Three, Paintings**

"_Expecto Patronum!_"

Harry gripped his wand fiercely, desperately trying to conjure up an image of happiness to mind. He thought of his favorite things, like flying and his library, and of course memories of Severus, but there was no stirring of happiness inside him. A small, smoky wisp escaped from the tip of Harry's wand, but nothing else. Harry felt his magic pulsing, fully capable of performing the spell, but his mind provided no positive thoughts to allow the Patronus Charm to work.

"Harry, don't - "

Harry pushed against the current of his magic until he felt a strange bubble of electricity erupt inside of him. He gasped and dropped his wand arm, swaying dangerously at his feet. Severus caught Harry by the shoulders and held him against his body until Harry could stand properly. Harry turned around and laid his forehead against the cool fabric of Severus' robes.

"I'm sorry, Severus." Harry murmured.

Severus stroked the top of Harry's head before reluctantly letting go.

"You aren't ready yet."

Harry sighed.

"I know..."

"Then don't try that again. We must go through all the standard spells first." Severus warned Harry, and led him to a settee. Harry sat down and drew his knees up to his chest, staring at Severus with wide eyes.

"I turn seven in three weeks, Severus." Harry said suddenly. Severus frowned, already sensing where this conversation was going.

"Yes, you are." Severus said slowly.

"I want to learn how to jump paintings." Harry said sullenly. Severus stood up, not willing to have this particular argument again, and bore his obsidian eyes into Harry's orbs.

"No." Severus said flatly. Harry jumped to his feet.

"The sooner I learn - " Severus grabbed Harry by the shoulders and shook him.

"You will do no such thing until you are old enough to fully understand what kind of magic that involves. We have been over this, Harry, more than once."

"But it's _useful_, Severus! I could see everything I want, and listen to all the conversations in the world. The perfect spy."

The words shook Severus. _The perfect spy. _Severus had once been the perfect spy. He watched for secrets, forged new alliances, recruited informants, tortured for information, and guarded his mind like a treasure chest. And even with all his knowledge as a spy, he _failed. _He couldn't prevent the Light side from falling apart. Harry couldn't possibly understand the sacrifice and mental strength it took to be the perfect spy. Always looking over your shoulder, never trusting anyone, waiting for death to knock on your door because _someone_ knew of your real alliance.

"You are young, Harry. Do not force yourself into your future role. We are both aware of your potential, and your position in this war, but you _must not_ rush things. Jumping paintings is extremely dangerous and can wait until you've learned all your spells."

Harry sighed, his body wilting into himself, and sat in a ball again. Severus didn't understand. Harry could _see _the magic surrounding magical paintings. It was a faint shimmer, and Harry just knew that with the right training, he could manipulate the magic. The same magic that allowed all paintings to speak and move. Harry was already having dreams in anticipation of learning, his dream-self touching the painting and actually _melting _into the surface until he was a living painting as well - his limbs moving nimbly, quickly jumping between paintings and seeing all there was to see in the world without anyone knowing his real identity.

He was a secret to the world - but the world would have no secrets from him.

---

**Just a little side note, I pushed Harry's age up a year. Previously, he started his spells at age 5 but that seemed too young, so now he's 6.**


End file.
